McColl’s Retail Group plc has appointed administrators following the breakdown of a deal with Morrisons.
In a statement, McColl’s said it was “left with no choice other than to place the Company in administration”. PriceWaterhouseCooper has been appointed as administrator “in the expectation that they intend to implement a sale of the business to a third-party purchaser as soon as possible”.
It stated: “Whilst the constructive discussions with the Company’s key wholesale supplier to find a solution with them to the Company’s funding issues and create a stable platform going forward had made significant progress, the lenders made clear that they were not satisfied that such discussions would reach an outcome acceptable to them.”
Morrisons confirmed the proposed deal in a statement. “We put forward a proposal that would have avoided today’s announcement that McColl’s is being put into administration, kept the vast majority of jobs and stores safe, as well as fully protecting pensioners and lenders. For thousands of hardworking people and pensioners, this is a very disappointing, damaging and unnecessary outcome.”
Earlier this week, McColl’s confirmed it would not be in a position to publish its Annual Report for the year ended 28 November 2021 at the end of May as originally intended and that it had expected shares to be suspended on 1 June. The retail group also responded to media reports about administration, saying it was “increasingly likely” unless finance was secured.
It employs around 16,000 staff across 1,165 stores.
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